The days are winding down until the most anticipated day of the whole family arrives--move-in day. The phrase, "Can we do this before I leave," is making its way through most conversations as you realize how many lasts you have to do before you can have all of those firsts.

You know you have to start packing (ugh) and prioritizing what needs to come with you and what you want to leave for when you come back home to visit, but of course, you put it off as long as you possibly can. But, really, who could blame you?

Your mom asks you what you want your last home cooked meal to be, and you probably recite a seven-course dinner with dessert in response because God forbid, you miss something. And then you think to yourself, is there a way I can store the leftovers in my mini fridge and live off of them all semester? Of course, you know that that is not an option and hope for the occasional care package instead.

All of your friends are starting to leave for their move-in days too, which means you have even less time than you thought. All of the sudden you become the master scheduler to make sure you see everyone share some "lasts" before we start our different sets of "firsts" without each other.

Last minute runs to Target become your saving grace because you notice that the navy blue in your pillow case doesn't match the navy blue of the pencil holder on your desk and that simply won't do. But also it is probably one of the last times in a while where you can go to Target with a budget bigger than $27.56 and you want to savor every last minute of the freedom.

Aside from all of this, the move-in day can't seem to come fast enough. It feels like you are constantly checking the date to see just how many more days are left, and every time you check, it still seems like too many. A little bit of jealousy even sets in when you remember that everyone who is rushing gets to move in sooner and you question why you didn't rush just for the extra few days on campus.

Amidst all the excitement of getting all your things together and finishing up the last few DIY projects you so courageously took on, you start to realize what you are leaving behind. Things like a dinner made from real food, not the college student staple foods like Ramen or Nutella. Or those nights where the whole family is sitting around the table engaged in a conversation about someone's new job or the best movies they've seen recently.

It's times like these that make you realize what a great thing you have to come back to.